A common breast reconstruction technique is tissue expansion, which involves expansion of the breast skin and muscle using a temporary tissue expander. Currently available tissue expanders are generically sized (small, medium, and large) and create a single breast mount geometry. However, owing to the limited number of sizes of such expanders, the size of the expanded pocket is limited to the preset number of sizes available for the tissue expanders. Moreover, it is not uncommon for tissue expanders to experience unwanted migration of the laterally or inferiorly.
Other tissue expanders, such as coronary balloons, are small in diameter and have cylindrical geometries, while breast air expanders are large diameter and generally spherical in geometries. The pressure required to inflate a balloon is inversely proportional to the diameter of the balloon. Therefore, the pressure requirements to expand a blood vessel versus muscle and skin are significantly different. Moreover, the anatomies being mechanically altered by the balloon/expander are different; coronary balloons are designed to alter plaque inside the vascular system. Conversely, breast air expanders are intended to move chest wall muscle, tendon and skin, which has entirely different properties than plaque or blood vessels. Thus, coronary balloons are not suitable as breast tissue expanders.